Harvey Peeler

Senators in Columbia should approve a bill this session that calls for a constitutional amendment that would preserve the secret ballot in South Carolina workplaces. The bill should be passed even though talk of the so-called “card check” bill has cooled in Washington, D.C., thanks to Congress’ single-minded focus on health-care reform.

Last spring, the S.C. House passed a bill that would require unionization votes in South Carolina to be conducted via secret ballot if S.C. voters approve a constitutional amendment. The amendment would protect South Carolina workers from an infringement of their privacy that would give unions too much power to influence the votes to create them.

Under the card check bill, known formally as the Employee Free Choice Act, the only requirement for a union to form would be for 50 percent plus one of employees at a given business to sign union authorization cards. Current law requires 30 percent of workers sign cards to trigger a NLRB-run secret election. In addition, both unions and employers are allowed a chance to present their case for or against unionization leading up to the vote.

American workers should not be denied the right to organize, and the current system really is the best environment for unionization elections. The card check system opens the door to intimidation by union organizers. What worker wouldn’t feel pressured to sign a card when being asked face-to-face whether he supports a union? Especially when he knows that every employee who supports unionization will know exactly which workers have signed pledge cards.

The language of the proposed amendment that’s already passed the S.C. House and could be on the ballot for voters this fall, reads: “To preserve and protect the fundamental right … to vote by secret ballot, where local, state, or federal law requires elections … or requires designations or authorizations for employee representation, the right of individuals to vote by secret ballot is guaranteed.”

Such an amendment should be put to the voters and would certainly prevent intimidation from any quarter when it comes to these very important votes in South Carolina. Workers already have a fair system to decide whether to unionize or not and, by and large, South Carolina workers have eschewed unionization. That’s no reason to let the federal government strip away workers’ rights.

The proposed amendment does not address another troubling aspect of EFCA which is the imposition of binding arbitration on employers if they don’t agree to a contract with a new union within 90 days of the start of negotiations.

Unions unwilling to compromise during contract negotiations would simply need to stall for 90 days to force arbitration that has the potential to hurt employers if arbitrators don’t consider market forces and employers’ costs. That could lead to job losses in an economy that can ill afford to unnecessarily shed jobs.

Although the card check bill has been sidetracked by Congress’ focus on health-care legislation, it’s important for South Carolina to protect its workers from losing their right to the secret ballot. It’s also important for lawmakers in Washington to preserve the free market by standing against the EFCA if and when it resurfaces in Congress.

Greenville Online